Question 1

Cream Cups bakes cakes in several varieties dedicated to special occasions.It also allows its customers to personalize the cakes according to their personal preferences.This is an example of:

Accepted Answer

Cream Cups's ability to offer personalized cakes indicates that they are practicing mass customization, which allows them to cater to the specific needs and wants of individual customers while still maintaining a level of efficiency in their production process.

Question 2

Which of the following does the philosophy underlying TQM include?

Accepted Answer

The philosophy underlying TQM (Total Quality Management) includes a focus on improving quality in order to increase market share and customer satisfaction. TQM emphasizes the importance of continuous improvement, involvement of all employees, and a focus on meeting customer needs and expectations. None of the other answer choices reflect the principles of TQM.

Question 3

Which of the following is the fmal result of the five-step chain reaction on which the philosophy of the TQM is based?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following is the fmal...

Question 4

The Mountain Ski Lodge spent $100,000 marketing and advertising its new ski trails and on-site spa.The money used for marketing and advertising can be referred to as:

Accepted Answer

The money spent on marketing and advertising is a fixed cost because it does not change with the level of output or the number of skiers.

Question 5

A company's hiring strategy:

Accepted Answer

Hiring strategies can directly affect employee productivity. For example, if a company hires individuals with the necessary skills and experience for a particular job, they are more likely to be productive and successful in their roles. On the other hand, if a company hires individuals without the necessary skills or experience, it may lead to lower productivity and efficiency.

Question 6

Learning effects:

Accepted Answer

Learning effects refer to the process of becoming more efficient through repetition and experience. They are more significant when a technologically complex task is repeated, as workers become better at handling the complexity and more skilled at performing the task. Therefore, option D is the best choice. The other options are incorrect because they either imply a constant increase in cost (option A), suggest that labor productivity is the main factor (option B), or are too general (options C and E).

Question 7

Unlike traditional manufacturing, flexible manufacturing:

Accepted Answer

Flexible manufacturing allows for quicker and easier customization of products, which can lead to lower unit costs as production can be adjusted to meet demand and minimize waste.

Question 8

Mass customization:

Accepted Answer

Mass customization is a strategy that combines mass production efficiency with product customization. It allows companies to offer a wide range of customized products while still achieving economies of scale and cost reductions. This approach enables companies to reconcile low cost and differentiation, which were once considered incompatible. The other options (A, B, C, and D) are not correct because they do not describe the concept of mass customization.

Question 9

Quality can best be thought of as:

Accepted Answer

Quality is related to the attributes that customers perceive as superior in a product, such as durability, reliability, and performance. It is what makes a product stand out and meet or exceed customer expectations.

Question 10

Just-in-time inventory systems:

Accepted Answer

Just-in-time inventory systems are used to reduce inventory holding costs by ordering materials and supplies just in time for production without keeping extra inventory on hand. This strategy helps businesses save money by not tying up resources in excess inventory. It is not limited to manufacturing firms, and it does not provide a buffer stock of inventory or outsource inventory management to other companies. It is focused on minimizing inventory levels and costs.

Question 11

Which of the following is not one of the principles commonly found in companies that have successfully embraced the TQM philosophy?

Accepted Answer

Defining work standards only in terms of numbers or quotas is not a principle commonly found in companies that have successfully embraced the TQM (Total Quality Management) philosophy. TQM emphasizes a customer-centric approach to quality, continuous improvement, employee involvement, and a focus on processes rather than just numbers or quotas. The other options listed (building an organizational commitment to quality, finding ways to measure quality, giving more time for supervisors to work with employees, and training new employees) are all common principles of TQM.

Question 12

Employee productivity is:

Accepted Answer

Employee productivity is one of the key determinants of a company's efficiency, as it directly affects the output of the company. The more productive the employees are, the more output the company can produce, which can lead to increased profitability.

Question 13

The experience curve concept:

Accepted Answer

The experience curve concept is very important in industries that mass-produce a standardized output, as it suggests that unit manufacturing costs decrease as cumulative output increases, due to learning effects and economies of scale. This allows companies to achieve a competitive advantage through lower costs and potentially higher profits. Option A is incorrect as the experience curve concept also accounts for economies of scale, not just diseconomies of scale. Option B is incorrect as the concept suggests that unit costs decrease, not increase, with increased output. Option D is incorrect as achieving low costs generally allows a firm to charge a lower price, not a premium price. Option E is unclear and not well-supported by the explanation of the experience curve concept.

Question 14

Which of the following is NOT a role played by infrastructure leadership in implementing reliability improvement methodologies?

Accepted Answer

Lengthening production time is not a role played by infrastructure leadership in implementing reliability improvement methodologies. The other choices are all relevant roles that infrastructure leadership can play, such as providing leadership, managing quality, setting goals and creating incentives, and soliciting input from employees.

Question 15

When credit card companies such as Visa and Mastercard allow an individual to put one of their own photos on their account credit card, they are utilizing:

Accepted Answer

Mass customization allows for the personalization of products or services to meet individual customer needs or preferences. Allowing customers to put their own photos on their credit cards is an example of mass customization.

Question 16

Which of the following is not a product attribute?

Accepted Answer

Price is not a physical or functional characteristic of a product, but rather a marketing factor that may affect a consumer's decision to make a purchase.

Question 17

With regard to customer defection, which of the following statements is incorrect?

Accepted Answer

The statement "The longer a company retains a customer the higher the average unit cost of each sale" is incorrect. This is because over time, the cost of serving a customer often decreases as the company becomes more familiar with their needs and can provide more efficient service.

Question 18

Which of the following is the first step in the five-step chain reaction, as articulated by Deming, with regard to the philosophy underlying TQM?

Accepted Answer

The first step in Deming's chain reaction is the reduction of costs due to improved quality, which leads to increased productivity and other benefits.

Question 19

refers to unit cost increases associated with a large scale of output.

Accepted Answer

Diseconomies of scale refer to the point where the unit cost increases as production increases beyond a certain point. This can happen due to various reasons such as the complexity of managing a large-scale production, the cost of coordination and communication between employees, and the difficulty of maintaining quality control.

Question 20

Which of the following is a tactical step for getting down the experience curve ahead of competitors?

Accepted Answer

Aggressive pricing and promotions can help increase sales volume quickly, allowing a company to move down the experience curve faster by gaining efficiencies and reducing costs through increased production.

Quiz 4: Building Competitive Advantage Through Functional-Level Strategy